Railroad owner slaps Upton resident with $20M lawsuit

The owner of the Grafton & Upton Railroad hit former selectwoman and Board of Health candidate Marsha Paul with a $20 million lawsuit accusing her of slander. Jon Delli Priscoli, a real estate and business investor based in Marlborough, filed the suit Wednesday in Middlesex Superior Court, alleging that Paul, of 20 Josiah Drive, slandered him to the media, an allegation she adamantly denies.

By Morgan Rousseau/Daily News staff

MetroWest Daily News, Framingham, MA

By Morgan Rousseau/Daily News staff

Posted May. 5, 2012 at 12:01 AM
Updated May 5, 2012 at 5:04 AM

By Morgan Rousseau/Daily News staff

Posted May. 5, 2012 at 12:01 AM
Updated May 5, 2012 at 5:04 AM

UPTON

» Social News

The owner of the Grafton & Upton Railroad hit former selectwoman and Board of Health candidate Marsha Paul with a $20 million lawsuit accusing her of slander.

Jon Delli Priscoli, a real estate and business investor based in Marlborough, filed the suit Wednesday in Middlesex Superior Court, alleging that Paul, of 20 Josiah Drive, slandered him to the media, an allegation she adamantly denies.

In the lawsuit, Delli Priscoli accuses Paul of making “slander and libel for false and malicious statements” in public and to newspapers, including the Daily News.

Those statements, Delli Priscoli said, have “irreparably harmed” his reputation and integrity.

One allegation says that Paul told the Daily News in 2008 that “she is concerned because the railroad passes by two schools in town,” and that it would create “big traffic jams” during the morning commute when it crosses roads.

Paul is also accused of seeking out the press to have her “false slanderous statements” published in various newspapers, causing Delli Priscoli “irreparable harm, bother personally and reputation wise in the community.”

The lawsuit seeks $20 million in damages to be proven at trial in front of a jury.

Delli Priscoli’s spokesman, Doug Pizzi, said Thursday “The lawsuit should speak for itself,” but had no further comment.

Paul told the Daily News that she will defend her innocence with documents and meeting minutes from when she was a public official.

Since then, some residents have openly questioned the railroad’s right to operate without local oversight.

Federal law exempts railroads from local regulation, however the Planning Board, backed by a group of concerned citizens told the Board of Selectmen in February that they intended to petition the federal Surface Transportation Board to investigate whether that is really the case.

However, the lawyer that had been in talks with the Planning Board decided against taking the case.

The Planning Board discussed representing itself pro-se at a meeting in April, however no decision was made.

“He’s saying (in the lawsuit) that I’m slandering him, and I’m not. All I want are the facts about what’s preempted. Is that against the law, to ask questions?” said Paul, an outspoken member of the citizens group.

The doubt comes from questions over a pellet packaging operation at the site, which some residents contend may not be federally protected if deemed separate from railroad activity.

There are also questions over whether the railroad can store chemicals on its property.

Federal officials visited the town in November to tell residents that the railroad is safe, and indeed exempt from local oversight.

Page 2 of 2 - Paul, an organic chemist, said that she has tried to get answers from Delli Priscoli about his railroad.

“I just want to work with this man. I told him, ‘I’m very pleased you’re building this containment area,’ ” she said, referring to a retention basin at the railyard designed to catch a chemical spill.

“I’‘ve said numerous times that he’s a good guy ... I don’t know why he’s (filing suit) now,” she said.

Paul said she hired an attorney. Court documents show that Delli Priscoli is representing himself.

Morgan Rousseau can be reached at 508-634-7546 or at mrousseau@wickedlocal.com.